I love seafood soup, there are so many recipes from around the world to try. The reason being that in the old days you would use the whole of the fish to save waste. The best flavour comes from the head and bones of the fish. Both should be used to make stocks and soups but you can use store-bought stock if you don’t have time to prepare the fish stock for this soup.
Ingredients
- 25 red (bell) peppers, deseeded and cut into small pieces
- 2 red chillies (chiles), deseeded and finely chopped
- 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 potatoes, peeled and roughly diced
- 200 ml/7 fl oz/scant 1 cup white wine
- 750 ml/1¼ pints/3 cups fish stock (see here)
- 8 saffron threads
- 0.5 tsp paprika
- 200 g/7 oz albacore tuna fillet, cut into chunks
- 200 g/7 oz plaice fillet, skinned and cut into chunks
- handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- olive oil and groundnut (peanut) oil, for frying
- salt and pepper
How to Make It
- Heat 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a deep saucepan over a medium heat. Add the red (bell) peppers, chillies (chiles), garlic and bay leaves and fry gently for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the potatoes, wine, stock, saffron and paprika. Season with salt and pepper.
- Lower the heat as soon as the soup begins to boil. Cover the pan with a lid and leave to simmer for 10 minutes.
- Heat some groundnut (peanut) oil in a frying pan (skillet) and fry the tuna chunks on both sides over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes until they are browned. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Test the potatoes with the tip of a sharp knife – they are almost ready when you feel some resistance as you push the knife in. Add the plaice and half the parsley, cook for 3 minutes, adding the tuna chunks in the final minute. Serve the soup sprinkled with the remaining parsley and accompanied by good country bread.
